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More People Than Ever Are Coming Out As Symbios**ual – Here’s What It Means
For people whose ‘type’ is established couples rather than individuals, a new word could help them to define their s**uality.
Symbios**ual is the latest term to be coined by researchers to describe a certain s**ual preference among LGBTQ+ and non-monogamy communities.
Many symbios**uals reportedly consider themselves to be extroverted, non-jealous people who crave intimacy, with one admitting they ‘desire to be desired.’
But what exactly is symbios**uality?
Well, according to new research, it involves being attracted to ‘the energy, multidimensionality, and power’ shared between people in pre-existing relationships.
For example, a symbios**ual might desire married, or long-term, couples – or multiple people in an established relationship – rather than individuals themselves.
Instead of being attracted to certain (or all) genders, they are drawn to the energy and dynamics shared between the couple or those in a multi-partner relationship.
In theory, someone could identify as both symbios**ual and a host of other identities at the same time.
“It is the attraction to the relationship and/or energy shared between people that makes symbios**uality distinct from pluris**ualities such as bis**uality or pans**uality,” states a study by s**uality researcher Dr. Sally W. Johnston, published in the Archives of S**ual Behaviour.
The study adds: “Symbios**uality is also distinct from an interest in or preference for relationship structures involving three or more people, as this interest does not necessarily imply an experience of attraction to relationship dynamics between people (pre-existing or not).”
Dr. Johnston examined data from 2023’s Pleasure Study, which surveyed nearly 400 participants about their s**ual and gender identity, to better understand the ‘phenomenon.’
“Some people said they were attracted to just the love and the secure attachment,” Wendy Walsh, relationship expert and psychology professor, told USA Today.
“Some were attracted to their aesthetic, like the two people as a couple, just looked really cool together. Some people were attracted to how they played with gender roles.”
A staggering 145 study participants were reported to have expressed feelings of attraction to couples rather than each individual in the relationship, according to the New York Post.
One participant found couples’ ‘cohesiveness’ attractive.
“You feed off their energy, their attraction to each other… there’s an interplay between the couple,” she said.
Another, named Eden, admitted they ‘seek a lot of validation, a lot of validation, and when there are multiple people like that, I feel like, oh, yes, yes, I’m doing things right.’
Symbios**uals exist across age, gender and ethnic groups, the research found.
But ‘more research is needed on how people make sense of their experiences of attraction to people in relationships in the context of their s**ual orientation and the sociocultural messages and information they have received about s**uality,’ noted Dr. Johnston.
The new term, whose description and ‘flag’ feature on Orientation Wiki, will hopefully help people across the world feel more comfortable with themselves and their identities.
And symbios**uality isn’t the only identity to have hit the headlines recently.
A TikTok star recently came out as trigender, bravely telling their followers that they identify with exactly three genders: male, female, and non-binary.
In a viral video, Emily Skvarch, who was met by an outpouring of positivity, said: “I feel all three of these genders at the same time.
“All the time. It doesn’t ever shift or change, or I feel one gender more strongly than the other like gender-fluid tends to be.”
Related Article: Reason So Many Straight Men Cheat On Their Wives With Other Men
Related Article: Woman Comes Out As Abros**ual After It Took Her 30 Years To Realize S**uality
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